The U.S. Navy has undertaken a sizeable research and development program of small manned submersible vehicles for performing exploratory an salvage functions in the oceans. Historically, these small submersibles have been launched and retrieved by a surface ship. This is difficult to accomplish because of the normal wave action around the ship. In order to overcome this problem, the Navy developed a submersible barge which can be towed by the ship for the launching and recovery of the submersible vehicle. When the barge is towed at a depth of about 40 feet the wave action is considerably less, and the submersible vehicle can easily take off and land on the submerged barge.
The prior development of this barge included separate manipulative controls for each ballast tank and for each of the flooding or blowing functions. The control of such a barge is not psychologically practical for a diver to operate since the operation requires knowledge of the complexities of the ballast tank locations, control locations, and control functions. Only by being intimately aware of the barges layout and design could an operator control the barge safely and effectively.